Pig To Be Euthanized After Attacking Townsend Couple
TOWNSEND (CBS) -- A pig that attacked a husband and wife in two separate incidents on their farm Tuesday night will be euthanized, Townsend Police said Wednesday afternoon.
The pig will also be tested for rabies "out of an abundance of caution," the department said in a release.
Police also said Jose Hernandez, who suffered life-threatening injuries after the the five-year-old, 250-pound boar attacked him on his farm on Fitchburg Road Tuesday, is in stable condition and is expected to survive.
His wife, Shannon Hernandez, told WBZ-TV's Nicole Jacobs that the pig, named Boss, first attacked her, knocking her down and cutting her with his tusks. She said Boss was "edgy" because she had separated him from several female pigs who were in heat.
"He came at me, I fell, he got five good gashes in me," said Shannon. "Everything's fine, they stitched me up, stapled me."
This is a picture of the pot belly pig that attacked a husband and wife in #Townsend #WBZ pic.twitter.com/8rH55qznYt
— Nicole Jacobs (@NicoleJacobsTV) May 4, 2016
Shannon suffered lacerations on her leg, arm, and wrist. She was treated at Leominster Hospital and released that night.
But as she was being tended to at the hospital, Shannon learned that her husband had also been attacked by Boss, and was being taken to UMass Memorial Medical Center with life-threatening injuries.
"He had gone and done water, and he attacked him as well," said Shannon. "He got the worst ... He lost a lot of blood."
Shannon said doctors put two pints of blood back into her husband, and that the boar had severed arteries in Jose's hand with his tusks.
She said Jose's life was saved when a nurse driving by saw him trying to wave down cars. Due to the severity of Jose's injuries, a medical helicopter was requested, but could not fly due to weather conditions.
Shannon said she felt overwhelmed by the support from neighbors and passersby, and couldn't wait to go and see her husband. She said she's never before felt threatened in any way by her pigs, and that Boss was "a really good pig."
"They're my pets, and they've never attacked me," said Shannon. "The girls go into heat every 21 days, so it's my responsibility to keep him quarantined enough that he won't break through, and he did, he broke through."
Earlier Wednesday, Shannon told WBZ that the decision of what to do with Boss was a difficult one. Townsend Police said they conferred with Townsend Animal Control Warden Mary Letourneau, the Animal Rescue League, the Massachusetts State Veterinarian, a local veterinarian, and the Massachusetts State Animal Inspector, as well as Shannon, to come to the decision to euthanize the boar.